When all the promises of these so-called developments seemed far fromcoming true,

there started an agitation on part of the, people, fighting to save theirhomes and
neighbourhoods from the fate of destruction. These residents belongingto the bottom of
the society with the help of visionaries, theorists and professionalswere able to plant the
seed of the concept of community participation in thedecision-making process
.
The first significant step as a result of the 1960s debate on communityparticipation in
planning and decision-making was the concept of Advocacy Planningin the US. Paul
Davidoff, an Urban Planning professor, first introduced this conceptin an article
published in the November 1965 issue of the Journal of the American
Institute of Planners, entitled “Advocacy and Pluralism in Planning.”
Davidoffpresents the idea of pluralism and advocacy in planning as an alternative
approachwhere the preparation of plans no longer remains the duty of city planning
agenciesbut can be developed by other interest groups or individuals with the help
ofplanners. He believes that advocacy and pluralism in planning is a good thing
andworks in favor of everyone involved, including governments and communities.Paul
Davidoff stressed on the urgency of representing low-income families inparticular by
planners under the banner of Advocacy Planning. He argued that theunderprivileged
group of the society was in dire need of professional assistance toadvocate their rights
and protect their interests. This article stirred a new wave ofparticipatory planning in the
US, with planners providing their services to poorcommunities in order to improve their
living conditions. The first practical example ofthe concept of Advocacy Planning was
the establishment of Architects RenewalCommittee in Harlem or ARCH in October 1964
in New York City. ARCH started itsoperations in April 1965 and consisted of a team of
architects and plannersproviding their architectural and planning services to the
inhabitants of Harlem inNew York in order to improve their living conditions.Parallel to
the Advocacy Planning movement in the United States, thecommunity groups in the
United Kingdom launched community action in the 1960s,50s and
1970s as a reaction to the government‟s policy of relocation and
redevelopment projects, resulting in property speculation. The project that laid the
foundation of the “Community Architecture Movement” in Britain was the Black Road
Area Improvement Project in Macclesfield, Cheshire, under the leadership of RodHack
ney, the first community architect in Britain.Hackney achieved major feat by attracting
the attention of Prince Charles in1984, which gave the needed boost and Royal
patronage to the Community Architecture Movement in Britain. Community Architecture
is based on a democratic

system of decision-making that advocates the inclusion of community members inissues

concerning their built environment.
13
 Community Architecture since then has developed in different forms aroundthe world
with a common vision. The literature in community participation mostlywritten in the
1960s and 1970s played a vital role in the development of the conceptof Community
Architecture.In 2013, the Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA) released a paper
titled
“Guide to Localism” composed of two parts, Part one being „Neighbourhood
Planning and Part two
„Getting Community Engagement R
ight
‟
. The paper is part of
the “Localism Bill” being proposed.
This project of RIBA n
ow termed as „Localism‟ is
another form of the Community Architecture movement, with the same drivingprinciple
of getting the people to join in the designing and development process oftheir own
places. The paper presented three policy proposals which require the
designers the “Duty to Consult”,
and the community
the “Right to Build” and the“Right to Buy”.
14
This step by the Institute is proof of how community architecture isstarting to be widely
accepted by both professionals/experts in the field and thecommon people/locals.For
many years, since the beginning of the movement until now, it has been,and still is, the
goal of community architecture to discover how people can be moreinvolved in the
shaping of their environment. As we move on into the future, it is thehope of many
advocates that community architecture be the answer to a moreharmonious living in
communities around the world.
SUMMARY/CONCLUSION
Community architecture emerged in the 20
th
century due to the problemsfaced by the decaying urban environments from the
industrial revolution. It camefrom the efforts of the local people to assert their rights as
members of thecommunity. Community architecture has taken many forms and names
and mayhave had little differences as to why and how it was developed but the
drivingprinciples are the same.
13

Faiza Moatasim, Practice of Community Architecture: A Case Study of Zone of

Opportunity Housing Co-operative, Montreal (2005)
14
RIBA, Guide to Localism - Part 2: Getting Community Engagement Right (2013)
The term community architecture may be a little hard to define or havevarying
definitions, one reason due to its close association or similarity with otherpractices of
architecture like community planning, community development, etc.Some experts site
Community Architecture as a movement, as it is in the U.K.Generally, Community
Architecture aims to involve the community members in theexecution of projects to
increase or ensure success of each endeavour and avoidthe same disastrous outcomes
of the urban developments and solutions made byexperts before without the consent
and the neglect of the end users. It is what theysaw as the solution to the past failures
basically due to the fact that the peoplethemselves are more familiar with what they
really need and want in theirenvironment and community, and with their participation,
acceptance of the endproducts is certain and the people are given a sense of pride and
confidence in theend products.Community architecture, in a sense, opposes the urban
developments thatgenerally neglect the citizens in the community where it is particularly
being done.Similar situations are projected even in films. This is proof of how the
practice andconcept of community architecture is gaining acceptance in both sides of
the party.
In the U.K., community architecture „movement‟ have gained easier
acceptance due to the support of his Royal Highness, the Prince of Wales. Thissituation
shows how political back-up had been useful and how needed it is in theadvancement
of the practice/movement. In the U.S., some of the efforts for theadvancement of
community architecture had been unsuccessful and fruitless due tolack of funding and
support from the government as well as from the people. In theend, it can therefore be
concluded that the success of the community architecturewill greatly depend upon the
support and commitment of the people, thegovernment, and the
professionals.REFERENCESCharles Knevitt and Nick Wates: Community Architecture:
How People are CreatingTheir Own Environment (1987)

Faiza Moatasim, Practice of Community Architecture: A Case Study of Zone

ofOpportunity Housing Co-operative, Montreal (2005) [PDF]Neal J. Mongold,
Community Architecture : Myth and Reality (1980) [PDF]RIBA, Guide to Localism - Part
2: Getting Community Engagement Right (2013)[PDF]RIBA, pamphlet, Community
Architecture: User Participation in the Design ofBuildings (London:1986)Richie Moalosi,
The impact of Socio-Cultural Factors Upon Human-centred Designin Botswana (2007)
[PDF]http://www.encyclopedia.com/topic/community_architecture.aspx#2http://www.enc
yclo.co.uk/define/community%20architecture